1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for testing condoms. More specifically, the present invention relates to an apparatus and method for automatically electronically testing condoms.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Conventionally, condoms are electronically tested by manually placing a condom on one of a plurality of mandrels. Approximately 10-20 mandrels are disposed on the outer periphery of a rotating wheel. Each mandrel is rotatably mounted on the wheel so that the mandrel may rotate about its longitudinal axis. As the wheel rotates, the condom loaded mandrel passes by a contoured plate having conductive foam attached thereto that electronically determines whether there are any holes in the condom in a manner that is known in the art. This plate is known in the art as a test net. As the mandrel passes by the plate, the mandrel rotates about its longitudinal axis about 11/2 to 2 revolutions. Thereafter, the condom is rolled off the mandrel and placed in either a good product bin or a bad product bin depending upon the results of the electronic test.
This conventional apparatus, which includes manually loading the condoms on the mandrels, can only test about 45 condoms per minute and typically operates at an efficiency of between 95 and 100%. Efficiency refers to the percentage of time that a condom has been properly loaded on the mandrel. The apparatus, in accordance with the present invention, tests about 330 condoms per minute at an efficiency of between 80 and 85%. Accordingly, the present invention tests about seven (7) times the number of condoms than the conventional apparatus during any given period of time. While the efficiency of the prior art manner of testing condoms is relatively high, the total number of condoms that can be tested is relatively low. Additionally, because the condoms are manually loaded on the mandrel, the prior art manner of testing condoms is quite labor intensive.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus that automatically loads condoms on a mandrel so that they may be electronically tested. It is a further object of the present invention to provide an apparatus that can automatically process a relatively large number of condoms.